An official website of the International Waste Resource Recovery and Energy Council
IWRREC, International Waste Resource Recovery and Energy Council

Technology Pathways

Waste-to-energy and renewable energy process flows

Official IWRREC reference diagrams for modern waste resource recovery and clean energy conversion pathways. Each stage represents equipment and systems subject to standards, testing, and certification.

Process flow diagrams

Static reference diagrams showing certified technology chains. IWRREC standards apply at each stage of these pathways.

Municipal waste conversion pathway

Waste to Biofuel
Municipal WasteSortingProcessingBiofuel Production

IWRREC standards govern each stage — from MSW sorting plant certification through processing equipment to biofuel output quality verification.

Thermochemical conversion pathway

Biomass to Bio-Methanol
BiomassGasificationSyngasBio-Methanol

Certification protocols for gasification reactors, syngas cleaning systems, and methanol synthesis equipment under IWRREC standards.

Power-to-liquid pathway

E-Methanol
Renewable Electr…CO₂ + Green H₂SynthesisE-Methanol

Standards for electrolysis systems, CO₂ capture integration, and e-methanol synthesis equipment performance verification.

Waste heat recovery pathway

Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC)
Industrial Waste…ORC SystemElectricity Gene…

IWRREC certificate for ORC turbines and heat exchangers converting low-grade waste heat into electrical energy.

Renewable energy storage pathway

Power-to-Gas
Renewable EnergyElectrolysisHydrogenMethane / Syn-Gas

Testing standards for electrolyzers, methanation reactors, and synthetic gas compression systems.

CO₂ valorization pathways

Carbon Capture & Utilization
CO₂ CaptureProcessingValuable ProductsCO₂ → EthanolCO₂ → MethanolCO₂ → Methane

IWRREC standards for carbon capture equipment and CO₂-to-product conversion machinery across CCU technology chains.

Supported clean-energy technologies

Hydrogen Energy

  • Green Hydrogen

    Electrolysis systems certified for renewable hydrogen production efficiency and safety.

Renewable Energy

  • Waste Heat Recovery

    ORC and heat recovery systems verified for industrial waste heat conversion.

  • Power-to-Gas

    Electrolysis and methanation equipment tested under IWRREC energy conversion standards.

Carbon Capture & Utilization

  • CO₂ to Methanol

    CCU synthesis equipment certified for conversion efficiency and output purity.

  • CO₂ to Ethanol

    Biological and catalytic CO₂ conversion systems under IWRREC standards.

  • CO₂ to Methane

    Methanation reactor certification for synthetic natural gas production.

Biogas & Renewable Fuels

  • Biomass to Energy

    Thermochemical and biological conversion equipment performance certification.

  • MSW to Energy

    Municipal solid waste processing and energy recovery machinery standards.

  • Algae Biofuel

    Algae cultivation and biofuel extraction equipment testing protocols.

Circular Economy

  • Waste Heat Energy Recovery

    Industrial heat recovery and CHP systems certified for efficiency benchmarks.

  • Material Recovery

    MRF and sorting systems verified for recovery rates and material purity.

  • Waste-to-Fuel

    RDF/SRF and waste-derived fuel production equipment certification.

Get involved

Standards guidance for technology pathways

Contact IWRREC for standards documentation applicable to equipment within these technology chains.